A problem for vendors of wireless communication networks, and particularly for vendors of Wi-Fi, or IEEE 802.11 wireless local area network (WLAN) communication systems, is the ability to provide sufficient coverage within an area at an efficient cost. For the most part, current Wi-Fi networks are built using one of two basic models as shown in FIG. 1: standalone (or thick) access points 102 connected to an Ethernet switch 100, or a combination of a wireless switch 100 and (thin) access points (i.e. access ports) 102. These two models are actually quite similar and differ only in the functional partitioning between the infrastructure devices and the access points. In the thick access point model, all the wireless functionality is located in the access point which is wired into an Ethernet switch, while in the wireless switch model some functions of the access point move into the wireless switch, which may itself be standalone or integrated into a regular wired Ethernet switch.
The access points are typically provided with both power and network connectivity via a Power over Ethernet (PoE) connection. The wired Ethernet switch 100 must incorporate POE capability in order to supply power to the access points, although separate POE adapters may be used between the switch and access points. As shown in FIG. 1, the prior art configuration is essentially a parallel configuration with each access point 102 individually connected to a central switch 100. In general the switch and the access points must be located within one hundred meters of one another. This requires wiring closets within a range of one hundred meters from any access point. In addition, there must be a wired Ethernet port with POE for each access point, and therefore the switch must be within one hundred meters of the AP. The cost of such as installation process can approach or even exceed the cost of the access point itself.
The unit costs of access points as well as the installation costs have lead the industry to focus on getting as much capacity out of a single access point as possible. Hence the popularity of IEEE 802.11n networks, and especially multiple stream, multiple-input multiple-output configurations. However, slower legacy 802.11b/g devices limit 802.11n operation and performance.
Accordingly, there is a need to provide an improved communication network with the ability to provide sufficient coverage in an area at a low cost.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.